Career prospects for an actuary

A reader of my blog asked about the career prospects for an actuary. Here are some facts given by someone who recently qualified as an actuary.

1. It takes about 7-8 years to qualify from start
2. Most actuaries work in insurance or consulting, but actual practice is not as mathematically challenging as most people think. Programming, common-sense and business considerations are needed to be successful..
3. Starting salary for fresh grads are about $2,000 to $2,500, but can grow fast depending on passes in the actuarial examinations. Work experience is also valuable in insurance/consulting firms.
4. The demand for qualified actuaries is growing in the region. There is less demand in Singapore, as the insurance market here is small.
5. You can get more information from www.actuaries.org.sg.
6. Actuaries can work in other finance areas geared towards mathematics eg quantitative finance, investment, financial engineering. They generally earn more but their work is more stressful.